188体育

Thank you to President Zelenskyy for hosting this important summit.聽聽

To say that we Brits have been inspired by the resilience, courage and indomitable spirit of the Ukrainian people would be a typically British understatement.聽聽

Your resilience honours the memory of the millions of innocent Ukrainians who lost their lives in the Holodomor 鈥� some 90 years ago.聽

And now,聽while Russia鈥檚 full-scale invasion is having a ripple effect on global food security 鈥撀爊owhere have the impacts of Putin鈥檚 aggression been felt more keenly than here,聽in Ukraine.聽

In the wake of the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam this summer,聽that left tens of thousands of Ukrainians in need of food, water, and basic supplies,聽I am proud that the UK was able to provide additional 拢16m of support 鈥� including response teams, pumps, and temporary barriers,聽that helped Ukrainian emergency workers deflect water and protect critical infrastructure like hospitals and schools.聽

Of course, flooding across 100,000 hectares land聽has had an untold impact on Ukraine鈥檚 wildlife and habitats,聽and on important grain and oil crops as well.聽

And amid the turmoil of war,聽the determination of Ukrainian farmers to get much of the harvest in,聽here in the breadbasket of Europe and your initiative to get the grain from Ukraine to some of the poorest and most vulnerable in the world,聽at a time when Ukrainians themselves are suffering so much 鈥� this demonstrates the very best of humanity.聽

And indeed, this work is immensely and increasingly important.聽

Even before this terrible conflict began,聽聽already, the number of people going hungry was on the rise 鈥撀爓ith around a billion people affected worldwide.聽

The number of people facing the consequences of severe drought 鈥� including conflict 鈥� is on the rise as well,聽with the impact of emergencies across the Horn of Africa and the Central Sahel falling disproportionately women and girls.聽

45 million children now suffer from acute malnutrition at any given time 鈥撀燼nd this preventable, life-threatening condition remains one of the biggest contributors to childhood deaths.聽

That means children under five are succumbing to common childhood illnesses that a well-nourished child would fend off,聽and simply wasting away, bringing profound and lasting impacts for the rest of their lives. So, I want to thank the Government of Ukraine for bringing us together to help change that.聽聽

Putin鈥檚 efforts to pitch us against one another must fail,聽and let us be clear 鈥� that is exactly what he wants to do.聽聽

The Black Sea Grain Initiative had enabled the export of 33 million tonnes of food from Ukraine,聽to 45 countries around the world 鈥撀燼nd until this summer,聽the World Food Programme procured 80% of its global wheat grain from Ukraine.聽

Yet as well as scuppering that initiative in July,聽Putin has attacked Ukrainian civilian grain and port infrastructure 鈥撀爏ystematically destroying more grain in attacks on Ukrainian ports than Putin promised to donate to African countries,聽with some 280,000 tonnes of grain gone, and counting 鈥撀爐hat is enough to feed over a million people, for a year 鈥撀犅爄nflating global grain prices to boost the value of Russian exports and line the Kremlin鈥檚 coffers. 聽

And all for the sake propping up Russia鈥檚 murderous war machine.聽聽

So much for solidarity. In the face of Putin鈥檚 crocodile tears 鈥撀爋ur focus remains resolutely on the real solutions we need.聽

That is why the 拢2m Grain Verification Scheme is part of the work that the UK has led through the G7 鈥撀爐o help identify stolen grain and frustrate Russia鈥檚 efforts to profit from theft.聽

The UK Ministry of Defence is working to establish a comprehensive Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance operation in the Black Sea 鈥撀爐o deter Russian attacks on cargo vessels.聽

We have developed an innovative insurance facility with a UK insurer for ships using Ukraine鈥檚 humanitarian corridor to help scale up exports.聽

And I am proud that the UK was the first country to liberalise all tariffs on imports of Ukrainian goods in support of your economy as well 鈥撀燼longside our wider commitments at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in London earlier summer.聽

Our Prime Minster, Rishi Sunak, has announced 拢3m for the World Food Programme 鈥撀燽uilding on our earlier contributions to President Zelenskyy鈥檚 initiative.聽

This time last year, the UK contributed 拢5m to this scheme,聽which funded the delivery of 25,000 tonnes of grain to Kenya.聽

Together, contributions from all donors to the scheme have brought 170,000 tonnes of relief to communities in Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, and Yemen.聽

The UK鈥檚 contribution of 拢3m 鈥撀爓hich equates to $3.7m 鈥撀爓ill fund a shipment that will get grain from Ukraine,聽to those who are suffering from acute food insecurity in Nigeria,聽taking the UK鈥檚 total military, humanitarian and economic support for Ukraine to 拢9.6bn, since the start of the invasion.聽

In short, the British people continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with you, here in Ukraine,聽and with those affected around the world,聽and if we all continue to stand together 鈥撀爄n defence of the freedom, democracy, and common decency that we treasure so deeply 鈥撀爐hen together, we will prevail.聽

Thank you.